1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an oil-feeding apparatus to be installed at an oil station for feeding fuel to automobiles and the like.
2. Statement of the Prior Art
Conventional oil-feeding apparatus of on-the-ground installation type comprises a main-body housing and oil-feeding hoses which are drawn therefrom. When oil is fed by use of the this type of oil-feeding apparatus, it is necessary to reduce the weight of the oil-feeding hose, which is applied to hands holding an oil-feeding nozzle provided at the free end of the oil-feeding hose, and attention has to be paid to the hoses not to be damaged or spoiled with the midportion thereof coming in contact with the ground.
For instance, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application 4-128198 discloses an oil feeding apparatus in which a strut is stood at a side part of a main body housing. An oil-feeding hose of the above apparatus is supported with the midportion thereof suspended on the upper part of the strut in order to support the weight of the oil-feeding hose at this midportion. Moreover, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application 52-26008 discloses an oil-feeding apparatus comprising a support unit for elastically supporting an oil-feeding hose by being rolled upward by means of an elastic support. Refer, also, to U.S. Pat. No 4,131,218.
However, it is sometimes hard to operate the conventional oil-feeding apparatus in which the oil-feeding hoses are supported with the midportion thereof suspended at the upper part of the strut, when a plurality of oil-feeding hoses are arranged side-by-side for feeding two or more kinds of oils, since the oil-feeding hoses which are adjacent each other are brought into contact or entangled. Moreover, in the case of using the apparatus in which the oil-feeding hose is elastically supported by being rolled upward by means of the elastic support, there is the risk that the oil-feeding hose and the side wall are damaged by the hose which tends to go too far beyond the initial position, owing to the restoring force of the elastic support, when the oil-feeding hose is brought back.